Essay on Ageism or Agism

“Ageism has been called the ultimate prejudice, the last discrimination, the cruelest rejection,” Stein (unpublished). We as a people have defeated for the most part racism and sexism, but we have allowed the third great “ism” to remain unchallenged. “This widely practiced prejudice has gone on for generations and is known as ageism,” (Palmore, Erdman, Ballagh (1999). By definition, according to Webster’s Dictionary, it is discrimination against person’s of a certain age group. Ageism includes both positive affect and a negative connotation with any given age group. It is predominately seen as a reflection on the elderly. Positive aspects of ageism on the elderly include medical care, discounts and tax

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) protects against age discrimination under Title VII. Specifically, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which was passed in 1967 by congress, covers discrimination against employees who are 40 or more years old. This topic should be a big concern for employers, since the number of elderly workers is increasing as the baby boomer population matures. It is estimated that as many as twenty-percent of the claims filed with the EEOC are for age discrimination. Also, age discrimination settlements can be considerably higher than typical discrimination cases. Upon research, the average award amount between 1955 and 1988 was $219,000.

After giving thought to the subject of ageism as it is directed against the elderly in American society, I find that although I generally have a great deal of respect for those older than me, I like most am guilty of some degree of stereotyping.

Age discrimination has long been present in society due to the rapid development happening around us. According to Farney, Aday & Breault (2006), this era of ageism is defined as "discrimination against any age group", but it often is pointed to age discrimination among adults which is slowly causing a negative effect for them in the workplace. In the workplace, adults with more experience and longer history behind them are targets of this ageism belief that companies and employers tend to have (Farney, Aday, & Breault, 2006). They are shunned and even fired in favor of accepting new and fresh faces for the company they have worked for. Unknown to most companies and employers, this notion of favoring the young and banishing the old can

Ageism has been defined as a type of discrimination that has a prejudice against an individual based on their age (Cherry, 2015). This was first used by Robert Butler, a gerontologist, who published back in 1969 the article that stated that ageism was a “serious national problem” (Levy; Macdonald, 2016). Mr. Butler was trying to help other understand and describe the stereotype and discrimination against the elder generation, and to show that ageism was as big of an issue compared to racism and sexism (Brownell, 2014). Since the establishment of Ageism, the growing work force of aged

Ageism is the discrimination of people based on their old or young. There will always be someone who is working at the same company that is either older or younger than you, doesn't matter if its only by a few months or years. Both people are at the company to do a job. At a local dermatologist, the story will follow to medical assistants almost 30 years apart in age. Their job is to help bring back patients and assist the doctor or physicians assistant. Although the government has worked to eliminate ageism in the workforce, prejudices based on age are still present and scene in day to day officers.

Today, ageism appears in many forms, forms that involve discrimination and prejudgment. A few examples to demonstrate how the elderly are prejudged could be said as: When people of an older age forget of names of people, they are viewed as having a failing memory whereas when a person of a younger age forgets someone’s name that person is said to be merely forgetful. Another example could be the difference in hearing, elderly are said to be hard hearing whereas a person of a younger age is said to have “selective hearing”

businesses. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) protects individuals, employees and job applicants, who are forty years of age or older from employment discrimination based on age. Despite the ADEA’s outlawing of age discrimination almost fifty years ago, “the trend of age-related workplace discrimination charges filed with the [U.S. Equal employment Opportunity Commission] EEOC is discouraging, but not unexpected” (Barrington 36). In 1993, 10% of the filings with the EEOC were for age discrimination, increasing to 30% in 2010, however a consistent climb began in 2000. The age discrimination filings were not limited to specific industries nor company size, as the filing percentage proved to be constant across all businesses and

Ageism is the intentional and subconscious discrimination against older adults, but it seems the younger generation does not understand that and dismisses the elderly. Showing respect and dignity to the older adult (OA) should be a courtesy ingrained in each of us, sadly, that has been forgotten in today’s society. The younger generations must learn the importance of respecting and take the time to listen to what the OA has to say and spend quality time with them.

Ageism is the discrimination against an individual or group due to age. While ageism is a real problem, many people tend to ignore it because it is so often practiced, people don’t even realize it is happening. The forms of ageism range from the very obvious to the more discrete, almost unrecognizable discrimination. While ageism is evident in all age groups, it tends to be more dominant among the elderly and teenagers or young adults.

According to Dittman (2003), “A survey of 84 people ages 60 and older, nearly 80 percent of respondents reported experiencing ageism--such as other people assuming they had memory or physical impairments due to their age.” What exactly is ageism? Ageism, termed by Robert Butler in 1969, is a form of discrimination or prejudice based on age. This can be emotionally or physically abusive for the individual. Elder adults are the majority that receive this kind of abuse. The elder population is continuously growing as death rates fall. This means that ageism will be a growing problem in years to come. One example of ageism that you can expect to see is stereotyping. There are many different stereotypes, which is just one of the forms of discrimination used against elders that younger people associate with seniors. For example, younger people joke about how slow older people are in their various activities. Most people consider elders a burden, which is part of what causes this negative association with them. There are so many ways people can discriminate against elders, but where does this take place? Ageism in the elder population can take place in employment, healthcare, and social media.

There has always been some “ism” that social movements have fought against throughout America’s history, and the issue of “ageism” was finally addressed in The Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Ageism can be defined as prejudiced beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors pertaining to older adults. To understand the ADEA fully, a brief history of age discrimination is useful to comprehend the Structural Level of this bill. Discrimination based on age was not a large issue until the beginning of the 20th century, mainly because it was a tacit form of discrimination. For the most part, people worked until they were at an age where they did not feel useful, and for the rest of their lives their families would take care of them. Industrialization

Stereotypes and assumptions are what form the phenomenon of ageism (Macnicol, 2006). Stereotyping is the prime component in the process of ageism, which leads to age discrimination, which includes actions such as excluding those in certain age groups or disadvantaging them (McHullin and Marshall 2001, as cited in Snape and Redman). It has been expressed by some that older workers have played their part, and hint at older workers to leave the workforce in order to allow more job opportunities the upcoming younger working generation (Shah and Kleiner, 2005).

Ageism is prejudice or discrimination on the basis of a person’s age. According to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), 7 million people were unemployed mid-year 2017, with 1.2 million of those people being fifty-five years of age or older. This older population plus the new graduates entering the workforce place the unemployment rate at about 4.4 percent.

According to Loreto (2000), ageism is a form of discrimination, prejudice, and stereotyping that is mostly experienced by elderly people. Most elderly people are mentally and physically well and regardless of their age, but society and its norms marginalise elderly people, treat them with disrespect, make them feel unwelcome and otherwise generalise as if they were all the same.